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| "The Global Society" by Frits Ahlefeldt-Laurvig licensed under Creative Commons |
It may seem obvious, but it is worthy to drive attention to the
fact that majorities are shapers of trends and trends often carry the seeds of
its own perpetuation.
There is much talk about the multiculturalism characteristic of
the global era, and there are global factors that justify this trend. Of
course, the fact that we can connect to Google+ and chat with someone in India
or Korea instantly and at a very low cost is one of the key drivers of the
multicultural society. But this explanation undoubtedly important, can
hide another explanation of a more local and less noticeable order. In the
United States (a giant in the field of building culture, through its leadership
in the area of music, film, etc) Millennials are the most racially diverse
generation in history. According to the 2014 census 43% of Millennials are
descendants of Hispanic, Asian or other foreign groups, and the United States
Census Bureau forecasts that, not only 50% of the millenials, but about half of
all the total population of the country will be "non-white" around
2043 [i] . This circumstance
leads to brands and Marketing companies to measure diversity in terms of
demographics and calculate the audience based on figures derived from the
census. However, as noted at the beginning, "majorities are trends’
shapers" and the impact of the change in the demographic composition does
not stop there, in the relation one to one, one Asian, one more
consumer of thai food , but that change has a multiplier effect: the
"generation of diversity" is an agent that promotes acceptance of
transforming and multiplying multiculturalism with energy.
As the advertising consultant Eddie Yoon points out in his
article in the Harvard Business Review , culture is not strictly determined by the racial origins
or membership of an individual, but is the product of the choices that each
person makes about how they spend their time and money. "The essence
of culture is a passion shared by different experiences in common” says
Eddie Yoon in his article. This approach to the concept of culture might explain
a phenomena such as this one: the
largest consumers of hip hop are not black colored and urban millenials, but
80% of this music is consumed by white men from the suburbs.
However, companies are running their campaigns mistakenly
thinking their consumers as a result of a binomial demographic function. The
logical corollary of this misunderstanding is the loss of many opportunities in
the global market.
[i] United States Census Bureau
[i] United States Census Bureau
